Chapter 12

Everyone around them turned to look.

Had Jiang Yi not known that Shen Siyun had once snatched a major project away from her current boss and left him too furious to eat for two days, she might genuinely have thought Shen Siyun was praising him for being broad-minded.

But Jiang Yi knew the whole story.

Coming from Shen Siyun, those words were obviously a veiled insult.

Jiang Yi smiled and replied, “President Shen has such an excellent memory. I’ll thank you on my boss’s behalf for the compliment.”

Shen Siyun’s mood suddenly improved.

“No need. Your boss is destined for great things. He knows when to yield and when to stand firm.”

Before leaving, she added, “Perhaps I should invite your boss to dinner sometime and thank him for letting Jiayu have that hardware-equipment project last time.”

Jiang Yi stared at her retreating figure, unable to speak for a long while.

That woman’s tongue was truly vicious beyond belief!

The guide continued leading the group around the office building. When they reached the fifth floor, Jiang Yi used the excuse of going to the restroom to slip away from the group.

The fifth floor was equally spacious, with a comfortable office environment. Floor-to-ceiling windows lined the outermost wall, filling the space with abundant light.

Jiang Yi slowly made her way over.

“Why did the printer have to break down now? This is driving me crazy!”

A voice came from the right.

Before Jiang Yi could react, someone crashed into her. Her hand instinctively grabbed at the nearest object.

Crash!

A sharp pain suddenly shot through her foot, and Jiang Yi’s face turned pale.

A potted plant had been knocked to the floor and shattered.

“Ah! I’m sorry, I’m so sorry!”

The careless employee came to her senses and hurriedly crouched down to ask whether Jiang Yi was all right.

“Are you hurt?!”

“What happened? Zheng Changle, why are you rushing around like that?” A woman’s voice cut in, carrying a faint note of reprimand.

The employee named Zheng Changle was holding a stack of documents. She hurriedly explained, “Department Head Yin, the manager asked me to photocopy these documents, but the printer broke down. I panicked and wasn’t watching where I was going, so I accidentally ran into her. I know it was my fault, but the manager really needs these urgently. If I don’t deliver them soon, he’ll scold me again.”

At the words “Department Head Yin,” Jiang Yi’s expression changed slightly.

Ignoring the pain, she lifted her head toward the speaker.

It really was Yin Lei.

She wore a delicate green-faced quartz watch on her wrist, and her short hair was tied into a small tail. Her face was clean and unadorned, giving her the impression of someone practical and hardworking.

Although she had only recently become a department head, she already carried an efficient, decisive air and clearly had a mind of her own.

“You go photocopy the documents first. I’ll take her to the infirmary.”

“Thank you, Department Head Yin! Sorry to trouble you!”

Zheng Changle hurried away with the documents.

“Are you all right?” Yin Lei crouched to inspect Jiang Yi’s injuries.

Jiang Yi’s thoughts shifted.

Realizing this might be a perfect opportunity to get close to Yin Lei, she concealed her emotions and said, “Let me see whether I can stand.”

The plant was a crown of thorns, its branches covered in sharp spines. It had fallen ​read the original at bailiantales.com​from a waist-high stand and struck her.

Not only had the pot injured the top of her foot, but the plant’s thorns had also scratched her calf and hand.

The wounds burned fiercely.

“I’ll help you to the infirmary.”

Seeing her injuries, Yin Lei decided they needed to be treated there. Several scratches on Jiang Yi’s calf were already bleeding.

“My hand.”

When Yin Lei slipped an arm beneath hers to support her, she accidentally touched a thorn embedded near the side of Jiang Yi’s palm.

Jiang Yi hissed softly in pain.

“Sorry.”

Yin Lei lifted her hand and discovered that a thorn was still lodged in it.

“Should I pull it out for you?”

“I’ll do it myself.”

Jiang Yi raised her hand and pulled the thorn free.

“Where’s the trash can?”

Yin Lei studied her for several moments.

“Give it to me. I’ll throw it away later.”

Jiang Yi had no choice but to place the thorn in her palm.

Yin Lei supported her downstairs toward the infirmary.

Before leaving, she stopped an employee passing nearby.

“Xiaoyuan, ask the cleaner to come and pick up the broken pieces on the floor.”

Xiaoyuan replied, “Ah, all right.”

The infirmary was on the second floor.

With Yin Lei supporting her, Jiang Yi sat down in front of the doctor.

The doctor asked, “How did you end up with so many injuries?”

Before Jiang Yi could answer, Yin Lei summarized the situation first, her words concise.

“She was scratched by a crown of thorns. The top of her left foot was struck, and her palm is injured too.”

After briefly examining her, the doctor turned to get disinfectant and other medical supplies.

“I’ll do it.”

Yin Lei took the tweezers, cotton, and rubbing alcohol from the doctor, then crouched and began applying it carefully, little by little.

“Actually, I can do it myself…” Jiang Yi tried to decline. She felt embarrassed troubling someone else.

“No need. Just stay still.”

Hearing the unquestionable firmness in her voice, Jiang Yi fell silent.

This woman spoke and acted far too decisively. Jiang Yi had the strange impression that if she continued refusing even twice more, Yin Lei would immediately turn cold and stop caring altogether.

But this was too valuable an opportunity to waste.

She had to talk to her, even if she could not extract any useful information. At the very least, becoming acquainted would make future contact easier.

“I heard that person call you Department Head Yin. You wouldn’t happen to be Yin Lei, the person ranked number one on the performance leaderboard, would you?”

“Mm.”

“You’re really impressive.”

Jiang Yi smiled, showing just enough admiration without making it seem unnatural.

“You don’t work for our company, do you?” Yin Lei asked.

In the quiet room, the sudden question struck directly at the heart of the matter, making Jiang Yi freeze briefly.

But she quickly found an explanation.

“That’s right. I’m a new employee sent over from Qiguang to learn. I followed the guide here, but I went to the restroom and lost the group. Then someone ran into me.”

Jiang Yi made herself look helpless and unfortunate.

She continued, “I actually wanted to work at Jiayu before. I heard the salary and benefits here are excellent, and the atmosphere between coworkers isn’t bad either. But I didn’t pass the interview, so I went to Qiguang Trading instead.

“I’ve also heard Jiayu is extremely competitive, that people often work overtime, and if they don’t perform well, their superiors tear them apart.”

Jiang Yi watched Yin Lei’s expression without blinking.

If Yin Lei held even the slightest resentment toward Jiayu, that would most likely be the opening they needed.

“You earn according to your ability. If you want more, you have to give more. Every company is the same.”

Yin Lei suddenly raised her eyes and looked directly at her.

Jiang Yi’s heart clenched violently, but her expression did not change. She forced out a smile.

“What is it? There isn’t something on my face, is there?”

Yin Lei stared at her for two seconds.

During those two seconds, Jiang Yi could not tell what she was thinking or whether she had become suspicious.

“Your foot is done. Give me your hand.”

Yin Lei lowered her head, threw the bloodstained cotton into the trash, replaced it with a fresh piece, and dabbed it with disinfectant.

Jiang Yi secretly sighed in relief and spread her injured hand before her.

“Well, well, Yin Lei. You’re actually handling your private love life during working hours!”

An unexpected voice came from the doorway.

Jiang Yi thought it sounded familiar and turned to look.

It was the woman who had accompanied Shen Siyun earlier that day—the same woman who had tried to flirt with Jiang Yi at BEATING HEART the previous night.

A cool sensation spread over Jiang Yi’s hand, followed by the sting of alcohol.

Her fingers instinctively curled inward. Coming back to herself, she returned her gaze to Yin Lei.

“Sorry. I didn’t warn you. Bear with it a little longer. I’m almost done.”

Yin Lei acted as though she had not heard the woman at the door at all. Completely unruffled, she continued disinfecting Jiang Yi’s wounds.

Jiang Yi glanced again at the woman in the doorway, who looked ready to explode.

She gave her a slight nod in greeting, then softly said, “Oh.”

After finishing with Jiang Yi’s hand, Yin Lei stood and finally looked toward the doorway.

“Xie Fulan, stop picking fights for no reason.”

The former intern who had leapt straight into a department-head position frowned slightly, yet remained as calm as a bystander.

The moment Xie Fulan saw Jiang Yi, she remembered her embarrassment from the previous day.

But Yin Lei’s behavior angered her even more.

Hadn’t Yin Lei said she disliked women with larger breasts than hers, women three ​unauthorized copy​years older than her, and women with many ex-girlfriends?

In terms of her chest alone, this woman was already larger than Yin Lei!

“Do you like her?”

Xie Fulan had always been direct and said exactly what was on her mind. She folded her arms and lifted her chin slightly, doing her best to hide her jealousy.

“I’ve known her for less than half a day.”

Xie Fulan gave a cold laugh.

“That doesn’t stop you from liking her.”

Perhaps Yin Lei could not be bothered with her absurd logic. She did not argue, merely glanced at her as though she were mentally unstable.

Then she turned and picked up a bottle of medicinal oil for swelling and bruising, along with a clean pair of slippers.

“Take those off and put these on. You probably won’t [unauthorized copy]be able to wear high heels home. Did you come with coworkers? If so, have one of them take you home later.”

“I came with coworkers.”

Following her instructions, Jiang Yi removed her high heels.

The top of her foot had been struck, and a large bruise was already beginning to appear.

“Yin Lei, you’re really something. We’ve only been broken up for one day, and you’ve already gotten together with someone else.”

Xie Fulan watched sourly as Yin Lei applied the medicinal oil to Jiang Yi.

She had never received that kind of treatment herself.

“Xie Fulan, you’re too noisy. If there’s nothing important, stop appearing in front of me. I won’t deliberately appear in front of you either.”

“She’s married.”

Xie Fulan casually dropped what she believed to be a devastating revelation.

“Xie Fulan, are you suffering from some kind of delusion?”

Yin Lei turned and looked her over.

“Stop making up rumors about other people.”

Having been rebuked, Xie Fulan’s mood worsened considerably. She rolled her eyes.

“How am I making anything up? I tried flirting with her yesterday. If she hadn’t told me she was married, you might have had to address me differently today.”

Yin Lei was rendered speechless.

After finishing with the medicine, she stood and looked at Jiang Yi.

“Do you want to call one of your coworkers to come and take you home?”

Jiang Yi had nearly become absorbed in watching the drama.

These two clearly had history, and she was secretly noting down that information in case it proved useful.

Then she abruptly heard Yin Lei speaking as though she intended to send her away.

No.

How could she allow that?

“I can manage by myself. I don’t want to trouble my coworkers.”

Jiang Yi lowered her head as though burdened by private worries, appearing hesitant to speak.

“They may have already gone back.”

At that, Yin Lei more or less understood Jiang Yi’s supposed predicament—

A newly hired employee being excluded by her coworkers.

She considered it for a moment.

“I still need to give a ten-minute summary speech at the exchange exhibition this afternoon. If you don’t mind waiting, I can take you home after work.”

Jiang Yi felt her plan was proceeding almost too smoothly.

She was about to get into Yin Lei’s car without the slightest difficulty.

Maintaining a restrained expression, she nodded.

“Then I’ll have to trouble you.”

“Add me on WeChat. I’ll come and get you later.”

“All right.”

Xie Fulan watched helplessly as the two exchanged contact information.

Her chest rose and fell violently. She turned away, pulled out her phone, and dialed a number.

Before the call could even connect, the other person rejected it.

Xie Fulan’s fury rose another level.

Refusing to give up, she called again.

This time, it connected. The person on the other end sounded faintly irritated.

“I’m in a meeting. Whatever it is, wait until I’m finished.”

Xie Fulan felt that she had suffered more frustration today than in the previous twenty-odd years of her life combined.

Furious, she brought the phone to her mouth and shouted—

“Shen Siyun! Your subordinate and your little lover are flirting in the infirmary! If you can tolerate stolen contentthat, then go ahead and continue your meeting!”

Yin Lei: “?”

Jiang Yi: “!”